Finger Lakes reds from '05 expected to be excellent

Today's column by Jeff Richards in the Star Gazette (link here) suggests that, as many have suspected, the quality of reds from the Finger Lakes in 2005 will be excellent - even though quantity will be lower due to two earlier harsh winters in a row. I believe that the same general logic holds true for Ontario.

I have eagerly been awaiting our Ontarian reds from '05 and so far the few that I have tasted have shown what the dryness and heat of that vintage were able to coax out of the grapes. I will be eager to try many more reds from '05, including the Bordeaux varieties grown here, to see what was achieved there. It should be a fantastic year for our big hybrid reds as well, and I'm hoping for lots of charry torrefazione complexity in those.

While not Finger Lakes, I have 4 bottle of Warm Lake Estates '05 Pinot Noir (Niagara Escarpment, NY), which I bought on futures at $27. We barrel tasted this during NiagarCOOL '96. I tasted it again when I picked the bottles up last October. This is really good stuff. I plan on buying more of this at the post-bottling price of $45.

While not Finger Lakes, I have 4 bottle of Warm Lake Estates '05 Pinot Noir (Niagara Escarpment, NY), which I bought on futures at $27. We barrel tasted this during NiagarCOOL '96. I tasted it again when I picked the bottles up last October. This is really good stuff. I plan on buying more of this at the post-bottling price of $45.

Wow, you really got my attention with that! A "Niagra Escarpment" red for $45.00 a bottle! Is it the fact that this wine is produced near you and this lends to it's allure, or can this wine really stand up next to a $45. Bordeaux or a California Pinot from lets say a Ricioli or a Salyem? I'd love to see some tasting notes on this wine. I would love to think that there are wines from the "Niagara Escarpment" that I would consider spending $45. on...a new frontier! Tom V

well, paul, if they are at all like the reds from Michigan in '05 they will be really fine wines. the judges at our competition in august got their first glimpse of the early release reds from '05 and were very impressed. i have to say however that the only ontario reds i have had from '05 so far - barrel samples at Strewn - were nothing to write home about. lets hope others fair better.

Tom, Warm Lake is a legit $40-$45 bottle of Pinot, esp in the 2005 vintage.
Paul, funny you should post this as I was going to "google" the piece tonite, John Izzard from Fulkerson http:// http://www.fulkersonwinery.com told me about this article today. Thanks for posting it-edited to add-Paul, did you see Thomas Laslo's comments on the old vine Baco? Just so you know he worked at Henry of Pelham at one point so he knows his Baco!

Wow, you really got my attention with that! A "Niagra Escarpment" red for $45.00 a bottle! Is it the fact that this wine is produced near you and this lends to it's allure, or can this wine really stand up next to a $45. Bordeaux or a California Pinot from lets say a Ricioli or a Salyem? I'd love to see some tasting notes on this wine. I would love to think that there are wines from the "Niagara Escarpment" that I would consider spending $45. on...a new frontier! Tom V

I'm very impressed with both the winery and the '05. Here are a few links:

Fall visit

A NiagaraCOOL visitor

Wine Lovers Page 6/12/06

Warm Lake Estate

i have to say however that the only ontario reds i have had from '05 so far - barrel samples at Strewn - were nothing to write home about. lets hope others fair better.

Dave, I hate to say this, but in my experience Strewn has never been anything to write home about, period ...

I quite believe that there will be many fine '05s from other Ontarian producers.

Ed, I did read the old-vine Baco comments.

You know, I have always believed that old-vine anything has merit - it's just that there is no financial return for a winemaker who, say, wishes to make a top-quality De Chaunac from 50-year-old vines aged in premium oak and then released after suitable bottle ageing, no matter how tasty and seamless such a wine might be. I've always believed that some of the greatest impediments to the diversification of quality can be found in the single-mindedness of market forces, strengthened by the drum of monolithic, repetitive, focused marketing.

Howie, I'm going to ask a slightly piquant question, but I ask it with total sincerity: Is the Pinot that pricey because that's the cost of making it, or does it cost that much because that's what they can charge for it? $27 doesn't sound unreasonable, but edging up to $50 sounds steep.

Of course, it's not like Ontario doesn't have its share of premium wineries with premium prices, and I often find myself asking the same question in relation to their more expensive offerings.

Paul, I recently posted a TN on the $36 Cdn that I paid for the '01 Stratus Gamay, which I picked up at NiagaraCOOL '05. The wine was truly wonderful. As far as $45 for the Warm Lake PN, to answer you question, I've known Mike Von Heckler, who runs the winery, for many years and from first hand experience, I can tell you he's focused on nothing but quality. Pinot Noir is all they grow and make. The vineyard site was selected specifically to grow PN. The viticultural practices are very labor intensive - no herbicides - regular plowing to remove all ground cover. All grapes are hand picked, and hand sorted, with only the best fruit going into their top wine. Rejected fruit, still good by many standards, is used for second label wines. The grapes from 4 different areas of the vineyard, which utilize several different clones, are kept separate and only blended before bottling. In fact, for the '05 vintage, there are separate bottlings for the overall blend, plus smaller bottling of the 4 different vineyard areas. After fermentation the wines are aged in mostly new oak for about 8-10 months. $45 is not an unusual price for such wines in Oregon, CA, WA or Burgundy.

Paul, I recently posted a TN on the $36 Cdn that I paid for the '01 Stratus Gamay, which I picked up at NiagaraCOOL '05. The wine was truly wonderful. As far as $45 for the Warm Lake PN, to answer you question, I've known Mike Von Heckler, who runs the winery, for many years and from first hand experience, I can tell you he's focused on nothing but quality. Pinot Noir is all they grow and make. The vineyard site was selected specifically to grow PN. The viticultural practices are very labor intensive - no herbicides - regular plowing to remove all ground cover. All grapes are hand picked, and hand sorted, with only the best fruit going into their top wine. Rejected fruit, still good by many standards, is used for second label wines. The grapes from 4 different areas of the vineyard, which utilize several different clones, are kept separate and only blended before bottling. In fact, for the '05 vintage, there are separate bottlings for the overall blend, plus smaller bottling of the 4 different vineyard areas. After fermentation the wines are aged in mostly new oak for about 8-10 months. $45 is not an unusual price for such wines in Oregon, CA, WA or Burgundy.

So what you're saying Howie is that they've paid their dues and put in an exceptional effort here, but the question still remains, does the wine taste like a $45.00 bottle of Pinot Noir? Well, I'll tell you, I am interested enough to pick up a few bottles of this wine as a future, $29.00 I can live with. Do you guys have any info on the '06 vintage? I don't know what kind of year it was way up north. I'd appreciate any info on how the '06s are viewed. Tom V

.....Do you guys have any info on the '06 vintage? I don't know what kind of year it was way up north. I'd appreciate any info on how the '06s are viewed. Tom V

Tom, It's hard to say about the '06 PN right now. For a lot of red varieties, rains in late September and early October led to a lot of bad fruit with rot, etc. (I obtained the worst Foch I've ever seen). However, I believe Warm Lake picked prior to all the rains (3rd week of September). '05 was exceptional, so I don't expect the '06 to be up to that standard, but I think they will still make a good wine. The '04 was much lighter than the '05, but is still pretty nice. My son was married in October '06 and I bought him a case of the '06 on futures as a wedding present, so I'm waiting also. With a bit of talking, I may be able to score a barrel tasting late in the spring. If I do, I'll post about it. BTW - PN is the only variety Warm Lake grows and makes.

[quote="Howie Hart"] I believe Warm Lake picked prior to all the rains (3rd week of September). '05 was exceptional, so I don't expect the '06 to be up to that standard, but I think they will still make a good wine.

Thanks for that info Howie, was the '06 growing season viewed as excellent before the deluge? Good move on your part picking up the '06 as a future. Congrats to your son & his wife. Tom V

Thanks for that info Howie, was the '06 growing season viewed as excellent before the deluge? Good move on your part picking up the '06 as a future. Congrats to your son & his wife. Tom V

Overall, it was typical until mid-August, but it varied around the area. It was wetter off Lake Erie than Lake Ontario. The early to mid-season ripening grapes seemed to fare worse. The late season varieties came in pretty good, but they ripened later than usual. I believe you might find some pretty good Cab Franc from the Niagara Peninsula of Ontario which may not have been harvested until late October or early November. BTW - futures for Warm Lake can be purchases of 3 bottles or more.

V[/quote]Overall, it was typical until mid-August, but it varied around the area. It was wetter off Lake Erie than Lake Ontario. The early to mid-season ripening grapes seemed to fare worse. The late season varieties came in pretty good, but they ripened later than usual. I believe you might find some pretty good Cab Franc from the Niagara Peninsula of Ontario which may not have been harvested until late October or early November. BTW - futures for Warm Lake can be purchases of 3 bottles or more.[/quote]

Thanks Again for the info Howie, I think what I'll do is wait for the next highly touted vintage in the region and then pick up 3 bottles on future, too much cabbage for a spotty vintage.

Between you and Paul always going on about the hybrid grapes, I decided it has been way too long since I had a good dose of them, so I went and ordered a case.

I found a great web site a few years ago called nywinecork.com which stocks tons of different hybrid and vinifera NYS wines from many different wineries. It's a great place to order a mixed case of NYS wines.

I rather like the hybrid wines for what they are, even though they can be a bit funky at times, I've always found them interesting and enjoyable.

Been drinking them forever, ever since I visited Hudson Valley Winery (don't know what became of it) with my future wife in her brand new 1978 AMC Pacer and picnicked with a bottle of Marechal Foch, ah memories!

I anxiously await my Rougeons, Chambourcins, Chancellors, Chelois, Baco Noir, and of course Marechal Foches! 11 bottles of glorious hybrids! ...and 1 bottle of Sheldrake Point Pinot Noir, just for balance! Tom V

I rather like the hybrid wines for what they are, even though they can be a bit funky at times, I've always found them interesting and enjoyable.

Tom, welcome back to the fine world of hybrids ...

You know, I believe that the funk is part of their identity. The only thing to watch out for when foraging for hybrids is quality winemaking: not all wineries have equally talented vineyardists and/or winemakers, frankly, and I've had hybrid wines from some tiny places that I think do a disservice to the grapes' image. My feeling is that these problems would all but be eliminated if only some procedural changes were made at said wineries, including understanding how the vines grow - they are different from viniferas - and less reliance on "formulaic" winemaking.

Having said that, when wineries like Malivoire, Hernder or D'Angelo in Ontario, or Johnson Estate in New York, Chaddsford in Pennsylvania or Turtle Run in Indiana do hybrids, you can pretty much bet the farm that they know what they are doing and are in fact doing a service to these hardy, healthy, acclimatized grapes through excellence from vineyard to glass.

Been drinking them forever, ever since I visited Hudson Valley Winery (don't know what became of it) with my future wife in her brand new 1978 AMC Pacer and picnicked with a bottle of Marechal Foch, ah memories!

I anxiously await my Rougeons, Chambourcins, Chancellors, Chelois, Baco Noir, and of course Marechal Foches! 11 bottles of glorious hybrids! ...and 1 bottle of Sheldrake Point Pinot Noir, just for balance! Tom V

Tom, it's too bad you weren't at the inaugural NiagaraCool in 2005 ... Jeff Murphy of Johnson Estate was there and we tried a 1978 Chancellor! I found the wine completely mature and very enjoyable.

Rougeon and Chelois - those are two hybrids that we see absolutely none of in Ontario ... and yet there was a time when Inniskillin actually had Chelois in the ground, back in its early days. I have never tried one personally, though I'd love to.

This is good news, Paul. I think my son may be attending Alfred University in the Fall and I hope to spend many weekends in the Finger Lakes region. When do you think the '05s will show up on shelves?

Jon, it's hard to say - I would expect a few to be coming onto the scene right about now. Certainly a few of our Ontarian '05s have been appearing; I just bought a Peller Estates '05 Baco the other day.

As for availability in NY State, perhaps Howie or Dan or Ed would have a better idea when most '05s can be expected to appear on retail shelves in general.

I would guess that most of the '05s are already on the shelves (especially the whites), except for those wines that use extensive oak aging. I would expect to start seeing some of the '06 whites by late Spring.

Thanks Howie and Paul. I'll be up in the Finger Lakes area around April 14th I think and I'll keep an eye out for the '05s.

Paul B wrote:
You know, I believe that the funk is part of their identity.

Yeah I agree Paul, and it doesn't both me. In fact I like it, It's part of the package, and if you enjoy these wines it's part of what they are. Personally, I much prefer these wines to something like the Rosemount Shiraz I had last week which I felt had no structure at all. Just a soft mushy spineless glob of fruit. It was an ok accompaniement to the weekday meal but I would have enjoyed a decent California Jug "Burgundy" with the meal too. On it's own it just wasn't very interesting.


Paul B wrote:
Tom, it's too bad you weren't at the inaugural NiagaraCool in 2005 ... Jeff Murphy of Johnson Estate was there and we tried a 1978 Chancellor! I found the wine completely mature and very enjoyable.


Wow a '78 Chancellor drinking well, a rare treat indeed!



Paul B wrote:
Rougeon and Chelois - those are two hybrids that we see absolutely none of in Ontario ... and yet there was a time when Inniskillin actually had Chelois in the ground, back in its early days. I have never tried one
personally, though I'd love to.


I checked with nywinecork.com and unfortunately they only ship in NYS. They told me it's very expensive to get the licenses to ship outside the state. Are you allowed to have wine shipped to you in Canada or are they very strict about it? ...well, if so, you can always grab yourself a bottle of Inniskillin Ice Wine and drown your sorrows, ain't too shabby that stuff! Tom V